As if Lewis were taking lessons from a Sith Lord — and maybe he is (see: conspiracy theories on Darth Belichick) — Lewis used his small arms to pick up an 190-pound man, Bills safety Jordan Power, and throw him to the ground during the Patriots’ Week 13 win over Buffalo. The hit was violent and nasty, but within the confines of the NFL rulebook.

If anyone needed proof that Lewis is “small but not little,” as Lewis explained in October, they need look no further than this play.

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Bill Belichick, for one, didn’t even need to see that play. He agreed with Lewis’ statement weeks ago.

“I think there are a lot of backs that go into that category that are short, but they’re not small guys,” Belichick said on a conference call on Nov. 21. “They have good lower body strength. They can take contact, and run through arm tackles and can run through contact. I would definitely put (Lewis) in that category.

“He’s got good balance, good lower body strength and good vision. When guys get a shot at him he’s able to maintain his balance and get through a lot of those hits. I think that’s a credit to his strength, and his power and his balance. He’s short but he’s not a little guy. I agree with that.”

Lewis had 15 carries for 92 yards against the Bills on Sunday after rushing 15 times for 112 yards the week earlier. That Week 12 performance marked the first time he’d rushed for over 100 yards in his career.

His ability to average six yards per carry or more in the last three games has been due, in large part, to his ability to break tackles, as demonstrated by his stiff-arm of Poyer.